


The sun has risen over the mountains in the distance.

by JamLabs



Series: MGS Summer Games 2020 [3]
Category: Metal Gear
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Chris has nothing to live for, F/M, Metal Gear: Ghost Babel, Referenced Human Experimentation, aka the one in which the Ghost Babel timeline plays out, and Snake does go back for Chris like he promised, and neither does Snake, but they'll find that purpose together, metal gear solid - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-29
Updated: 2020-08-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:33:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26183479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JamLabs/pseuds/JamLabs
Summary: Chris Jenner gets a surprise visit from an old friend with a mission.
Relationships: Chris Jenner/Solid Snake, Otacon & Solid Snake
Series: MGS Summer Games 2020 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1885432
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4
Collections: Metal Gear Solid - Summer Games -2020





	The sun has risen over the mountains in the distance.

Chris scowls, hands on her hips as she looks at Snake. He has the gall to give her a sheepish smile, instead of immediately apologizing for making her wait so long. He promised to come back! Why the hell did it take yet another trip into the field forced (of course) by Campbell? “Sorry,” he says immediately, rubbing at the back of his neck. She softens a little. She recognizes that nervous tic. She saw it enough during the Galude intrusion. “I… I didn’t mean to keep you waiting so long."

“Started to think you’d never come back,” Chris says. “Started to think you’d left me behind.”

Snake winces. “Ah…” He mutters.

“And now you’re here.”

“I… I need your help.” Snake says. “Campbell got back to me. Terrorists are trying to steal another Metal Gear.”

Her heart skips a beat. “Another one? You’d think they’d learn after everything with Gander…” It was all set up by the U.S. government in the first place, with Gardner and Campbell and Weasel and the ‘General’ and Black Chamber… Ugh, it hurts her head. It goes up so far and so long.

“Yeah… You’d think.” Snake looks genuinely bitter. It doesn’t surprise her. She knows he left to try and forgive himself, to try and make life something worth living. To try and reconcile with all the murder he’s committed. To deal with the fact that he loves fighting and loves war. She gets it, she really does. She tried to find her ideals in battle. She tried to use the black and white of the military to give her something to believe in. It was Snake that showed her the truth. Snake that showed her that she had to make her own ideals, that she couldn’t depend on others to find them for her.

Chris reaches back and tightens her ponytail. “I’m with you. What do you need me to do?”

Snake looks briefly surprised. It then hardens into resolve. “I need you with me. To stand by my side.”

“You just needed to ask, Snake.”

“David.” He says, looking up at her. “My name is David.”

“David.” She repeats. Her heart has melted for this man all over again. She smiles at him, and he smiles back, something soft and private. “Well, Dave. When do we start?”

Shadow Moses is freezing. Chris stole an enemy uniform, just like last time, but she’s still freezing! She paces restlessly, trying to warm herself back up. She’s got to wait for Snake to make contact again. She’s got the same identification as last time, a red cap with her hair pulled through. She “patrols” the hallways, mainly trying to warm herself back up. She’s found the room with that shivering scientist, though he’s probably not shaking from the cold. He shivers and casts weary looks over his shoulder whenever she’s in the same room as him. This is the man Snake’s looking for? Sheesh. What a mess. She's "patrolling" again when she feels someone behind her.

“Hey.” Snake says.

“Hey yourself,” she responds. She holsters her weapons and leads him down the corridor, freezing at the trail of bodies left in front of her. Oh god. That’s…

They both catch sight of… something. It’s grey and orange and wielding two swords. It turns to look at Snake before entering the room where that scientist is working. Chris glances at Snake and they both take off immediately. Snake confronts the ninja (?????) as Chris pulls her weapon. It (he??) rambles on and on about friend and foe and needing Snake to fight him to the death. He turns his gaze onto Chris and she scowls, pointing her gun at the ninja, ignoring the quivering man behind him. “You.” He says, in that strangely robotic voice. “You’re not supposed to be here.”

“Yeah, well, I am.” Chris says, voice dry.

“It doesn’t matter.” Snake snaps, turning the ninja’s attention back to him. “Your fight is with me. Not her.”

The ninja tilts his head. “Oh? Finally settled down, have you Snake?” Chris watches the tips of his ears go red as the coward behind the ninja scrambles into a locker. She’s sure if she could see the ninja’s eyes, they’d be rolling. “Fine. He can watch from in there. And you,” he says, pointing his sword at Chris, “can stay out of my way.”

Snake gives her a Look. She sighs. “Alright, you two can have your fight. I’ll stay out of it.” She sits down in one of the cubicles and glares at the both of them. They both have the decency to look slightly embarrassed. Yeah, maybe now they’ll see now ridiculous they’re being.  
The two fight. Chis watches, her pistol drawn on the ninja, just in case. He flips around the room, fighting Snake in hand to hand. He's good. His technique reminds her of Snake's, if she's being honest. Then, things start to go wrong. The ninja's slowing down. Sparks fly off his body. He demands for Snake to hurt him, to make him feel again. Chris stands up as soon as the man stops fighting and starts to speak.

"It can't be…! you were killed in Zanzibar.." Snake looks shaken. Hurt.

The ninja screams in pain, his lights flashing. Snake takes a step back, and Chris takes one forward. The ninja falls at Snake's feet and bangs his head into the ground. "I… I'm losing myself…" he rasps. The sound of circuits shorting and something frying snaps through the silence and the ninja pauses. He then lets out another scream of pure pain, flipping to his feet, activating that stealth camo, and disappearing.  
Snake kneels to call his team, and Chris discretely hops onto call too, listening to everything while standing at Snake's side. That man was named Gray Fox. He knew Snake. He was locked up and tortured for four years, being used as a test dummy, a lab rat. Naomi sounds bitter and angry. Snake just sounds… sad. She knows he doesn't want to kill again. Especially an old friend. But if he’s in that much pain and doesn't remember who he is… it might be for the best.

Snake stands and approaches the locker. "How long are you gonna stay in there?" He snaps, looking irritated.

"Are you… one of them..?" The other man asks.

"No, I'm not." Snake says.

"Then what about that guard?!" The man squeaks. Snake glances back at Chris. She shrugs. She knows her disguise probably isn't helping matters.

"....she's with me. Just hurry up and get out."

"She?" Chris thinks she hears the scientist mutter.

He opens the locker and stares up at Snake, before slowly rising to his feet. "Your uniform is different than theirs," he says. He jumps when he sees Chris behind Snake. "B-behind you!"

Snake sighs. "She’s with me. It’s a disguise."

Chris tips her cap. "Sergeant Chris Jenner of Delta Force at your service."

"You're the Metal Gear's chief engineer Hal Emmerich, aren't you?" Snake asks.

The man-- Emmerich-- rises to his feet. "You know me?"

"I heard about you."

"Oh… so you're here to rescue me?" Emmerich looks hopeful. Chris winces. Let him down easy, Snake…

Snake glances back at her for a moment. "...Maybe after the mission." He says. "Time is tight right now."

"Oh." Emmerich says again. He steps out and limps over towards a desk. Chris frowns.

"You're hurt." She says.

Emmerich adjusts his glasses. "I just twisted my ankle a little bit trying to get away."

"Well if that's all--"

"Snake!" Chris hisses. "He's a civvie. He's not like us!" Snake pauses, before nodding.

"Do you know how to set it?" He asks.

"Huh?"

"Your ankle. Can you set it?"

"Um… maybe? I know the theory…" Emmerich fiddles with his glasses again. Chris sighs and grabs a medkit she noticed while watching the fight. She walks back and gestures for the man to sit down.

"I'll set it for you. Keep your weight off it if you can." She nods at Snake. "He's got some questions for you. And so do I. What the hell are you thinking, making another Metal Gear?"

"Another?" He sounds a little confused.

"You ever heard of GANDER?" Snake asks, gripping the edge of one of the desks.

"N-no!" Emmerich stammers, looking between the two of them. "What's GANDER?"

Chris scoffs. "Typical. All covered up."

"Gardner's work." Snake says, shaking his head. "He might be behind this, too."

"What is going on?" Emmerich asks. "Who's Gardner? What's covered up?"

"Never mind that. What are you doing, making another Metal Gear?" Snake demands, leaning closer to the engineer.

Emmerich puts his hands up defensively. "It’s to shoot down nuclear threats! It's a defensive machine!"

"Stop lying to me!"

"I swear! I swear!" The man looks near tears, and Chris thinks of Jimmy. Her breath hitches and Snake turns to her immediately.

"Chris…?"

"He's like Jimmy." She says softly. "He's… he didn’t know. He doesn't know."

Snake takes her hand and runs his thumb across the back. "You’re right." He says. She looks at Emmerich and thinks of the boy that was conscripted into building a Metal Gear. The boy that got captured with her. The boy that died in Snake's arms.

"Hey, listen." Chris says. "They lied to you. The government always does." Emmerich looks like he's about to protest, but she continues. "You've never heard of me, or GANDER, or Black Chamber. All covered up. Hell, Black Chamber was killed by their own allies. This Metal Gear is going to be used to launch a nuke. Not for defense."

Emmerich really starts to tear up. "Damn… Damn! I'm a fool! I'm such a fool!" Snake looks awkward, just standing there as a man breaks down in front of him.

"It's alright." He says stiffly, reaching out to pat Emmerich on the shoulder. "You can help us. We're here to destroy it."

Emmerich sniffs and wipes his eyes. "I-I'll help you!" He says. "I can give you my keycard, give you information… whatever you need!"

"Thanks Emmerich." Snake says.

"You've got your code name… I'll have one too! Call me Otacon!" The man beams. "It means Otaku Con--"

Chris cuts him off. "Okay Otacon. You can call me Jenner. That's Snake."

Snake nods before he suddenly gets a look in his eyes. He hovers over Otacon, looking concerned. "Are you feeling alright?"

"H-huh? Why are you getting so friendly all a sudden?"

Snake stands back up. "Everyone I've met on this mission seems to die."

Otacon pales. "You’re bad luck…" he mutters.

Chris rolls her eyes. "Okay boys, let's hurry this along. We've got a mission to accomplish, and not much time before REX launches." She shoots a look at Snake. "You want me to find us another Jeep?"

Snake chuckles, and it makes her smile. "No, not yet." Otacon looks between the two of them, and Snake glances at him. "Get a move on. You can’t stay here."

Chris tightens her cap and nods at Snake. She knows it's directed towards Otacon, but it's not bad advice. "Call me when you need me. I may be undercover, but I'll be there to help. I've got your back, Snake."

"I know." Snake says. As she's about to leave, Snake calls her name. "Chris."

"Yeah?"

".....stay safe. Come back in one piece."

She gives him a salute and heads out, leaving him with Otacon. They've got a mission to finish. She's not letting anyone take away Snake's love for life.

Chris swings outside the base in her… repurposed Jeep, Meryl in shotgun. "C'mon Snake…" she mutters. Meryl grabs at her chest, hissing in pain. Chris was able to get her away from that… Ocelot guy, after she was shot. She patched the rookie up to the best of her ability, but if she doesn't find an actual medic it'll be closer than comfort.

She sees Snake by a door, and guns it towards him. She slides up next to him and unlocks the doors. "Snake!" She shouts, a wide grin on her face. "I got us a Jeep!"

Snake looks exhausted, bruised and battered, but a smile crosses his face when he hears that. He laughs softly and opens the door, ushering Otacon in in front of him. "I knew I could count on you, Chris."

"Of course you can, David." She says, her voice soft. She puts the Jeep in gear and starts off into the snow.

"David?" Otacon says. "I'm Hal."

"Meryl," the rookie says with a pained groan. "God damn it, this hurts like a bitch…"

"I like her," Chris says cheerfully. "She reminds me of me!"

David grins. "Yeah, I thought so too. You did good out there, kid. We're gonna get you patched up."

Hal fidgets in the backseat. "I can't believe we did it… What now?"

There's a brief moment of silence as they drive down the road. "...we live." David says simply. "Chris. I'm not leaving you behind again. I want to hunt those men down, but with you by my side." He looks at the others in the Jeep. "With all of you, if you'd like to."

Hal perks up immediately. "I want to use my skills for good," he says. "If I can do that with you…"

"Get back to me when I'm not bleeding out." Meryl says.

Chris locks eyes with Snake in the rear view mirror. "I'll follow you anywhere, Dave." As she drives across the snow, the sun rises, coloring it with reds and oranges and yellows. It's beautiful. She remembers the first time she did this, years ago with Snake. Setting off into the sunrise, with a promise to wait, and a promise to come back. She shakes her head and smiles. David came back. They're going to search side by side.

It's all going to be okay.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Please please PLEASE play ghost babel, it's so good and I love all the characters so much....  
> I adore Snake and Chris' dynamic and I love writing about them so much it's unreal


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